Davutoglu urges restraint on Iranian nuclear issue

Speaking to reporters en route to Turkey from a meeting between Turkey and the European Union in Brussels, where negotiations began on the environment chapter as part of Turkey's EU accession process, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu urged the major Western powers to avoid a confrontation with Iran over its nuclear program, adding that diplomatic efforts to solve the issue should continue even if their success appears unlikely. "Even one percent probability is not low in diplomacy," he said. "The point is to make the right offer at the right time. Escalating tension on this issue will mean a loss for everyone." He added, "Stability in the Middle East would benefit Turkey, but if tension in the region flares up, then Turkey will suffer great losses." Davutoglu also said both sides should stop raising tension with heated rhetoric. "One side says all options, including a military attack, are on the table against Iran, while the other side, Iran, tests missiles to show it won't be deterred by military threats," he said. "The Middle East should not be the scene of such tension." Davutoglu said Ankara would push to have regular contact with senior Iranian officials in order to find a way to resolve the dispute through diplomatic means. "In the past, whenever there has been tension we have always lost," he explained. "We were negatively influenced when sanctions were imposed on Iraq. Our efforts are aimed at preventing such negative developments; they are not any reflection of our ambition for mediation, as some have perceived." Davutoglu also said that the Iranian nuclear issue isn't a NATO matter, adding that NATO shouldn't get involved in a "new Cold War" or define itself according to a bipolar world. Turkey has taken steps in recent years to improve its ties with neighboring Iran, stuck in an escalating standoff with the West over its nuclear program. Ankara says it is opposed to Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, but also dismisses Western calls for sanctions or military measures against Iran.